Our Story

Since the first group of twenty-five kids, 15,000 Indigenous high schoolers and 5000 university students have now been through our program. It’s the largest volunteer movement of university students in Australian history. We’ve managed to close the education gap for this group: 75% of non-Indigenous people between age 17-24 are in employment, university or further training. The Indigenous rate is 42%. AIME kids have closed that gap heading through into jobs or university at 75% + for the last 6 years running.

In further measuring AIME’s impact, Australian universities have completed independent research that has found that the program is one of the best things that university students do during their degree. The same body of research has found what may be expected: that the kids have increased sense of strength of identity, purpose and aspirations1. As an economic solution for governments, KPMG found that for every dollar invested into AIME, seven were returned into the Australian economy2.

A letter to the world was recently co-signed by over thirty leaders, including fifteen Australian university leaders, and Australia’s first female Governor General, Quentin Bryce, and it led with the sentence, ‘It’s not every day that an idea that can change the world comes across your desk. Today we wanted to share one we’ve kept secret in Australia for the last 12 years3.’

Ian Narev, the CEO of Commonwealth Bank, has proclaimed of AIME, ‘This in my mind is one of the most impressive start-up stories I have seen in Australia 4.’ And Sir Richard Branson, whose sense of bravery and fearlessness in running into the unknown I’ve tried to emulate, said ‘The spirit of mentoring should be embedded in all businesses and certainly is at Virgin. AIME reminds me a lot of the Branson Centre of Entrepreneurship with its messages of mentorship, leadership and entrepreneurship. It is an excellent example of using business as a force for good5.’

We’ve received a fair whack of awards. We’re the twelfth best place to work in Asia according to BRW, which shows our commitment to working on the internal systems and people required to scale the movement. AIME was the first ever charity to receive a grant from Google in Australia. And I’ve been lucky to receive a couple of awards, including being the youngest person in Australian history to receive an honorary doctorate. What all these endorsements say is that this is not an idealistic solution for educators and policy makers across the globe. We are talking about a scalable, cost-effective solution to alleviating disadvantage. One that keeps communities where they are and gives them a reason to band together. A solution that crosses racial and social division.

AIME works. It’s fast, cost effective and adaptable. And it works because we shift mindsets.

A recent study from McKinsey looking at half a million students across seventy-two countries found that those with a growth mindset outperformed those with a fixed mindset. That is, those who believed that they could improve with hard work did better. It also discovered that mindset was the most powerful individual factor to lifting a student’s educational performance, even more than socio-economic status 6. These concepts are well and truly at the heart of AIME: we believe a permanent shift in mindset can end the cycle of disadvantage.

The Program

We offer 10 hours worth of free tutoring, per school, per year, delivered at schools.

We offer career and transition support for Year 12 students during their final year and
for 6 months after they complete secondary school.

We deliver our Theatre of Education on the university campus. In total, we deliver over
40 individual one-hour development workshops for mentees throughout their high
schooling experience. The university mentors act as tutors and guides throughout the workshops.

c) Grade 11/12 attend two days on the university campus, exploring the next steps into
university, employment or further training.

In total, the kids receive over 100 hours of extra intensive support from age 12-18, to shift
their mindsets and provide the frameworks and motivation for the students to lift
themselves out of inequality.

AIME TV

The spine of the AIME Program on the university campus is delivered through AIME TV; a
world-class TV show for 12-18 year olds. AIME TV is a mix between Sesame Street and
Khan Academy featuring valuable lessons that can be learned from the experiences of
real people. AIME TV is mentors speaking truth.

AIME TV is also a huge resource for mentors, teachers and the general public worldwide.

Proving Change

We inspire the kids being left behind to finish school and head into university and
employment at the same rate as their peers.

We track every student's progression in the program, from the moment they join us.
From their permission note, through to their program surveys. We track their
attendance and year-on-year transition.

EVERY STUDENT’S LIFE COUNTS, AND WE MEASURE, RECORD AND REPORT ON THEIR
EDUCATIONAL JOURNEY.

All the tracking and all the support culminates each year in the transition of secondary
school students into their next chapter, at university or employment.

Proving the impact of AIME is at our heart.
The numbers and the data speak the truth.

The Clothing of Mentors

AIME Apparel was launched on 29 June 2015 creating a new chapter at AIME.

What began with 25 kids, 25 uni students and one bright yellow t-shirt back in 2005, lives
on with every mentor who has grabbed a hoodie or a piece of AIME Apparel and stepped
up to help build a new future for this world.

AIME Apparel is the clothing of mentors.

Behind each artwork is a story from an AIME student. At the centre of our clothing line is
the AIME Hoodie.

AIME launched the first hoodie in 2010. Since then, it has become a powerful symbol of
people coming together, a symbol for change for a generation of future leaders who
strive to create a culture where for every step you take forward in life, you throw your
hand back and bring someone with you.

THE AIME HOODIE IS A SYMBOL OF KINDNESS THAT IS DRIVEN BY THE HEARTBEAT OF MENTORING

Go Further

Become an AIME friend

Find us

Welcome to the Beta version of our new website. We’ve launched this a little early as we are excited to open Mentor Applications in Australia, Uganda and South Africa for 2018. If you notice anything that doesn’t look quite right please let us know.

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Welcome to the Beta version of our new website. We’ve launched this a little early as we are excited to open Mentor Applications in Australia, Uganda and South Africa for 2018. If you notice anything that doesn’t look quite right please let us know.